Project financed by JHL looks into solving Finland’s shortage of labour
Trade Union JHL is financing a new research project that looks into changes in working life along with looking for solutions to the shortage of labour. The project is a natural continuation to our own reports on demographic change. Increasing immigration would be one good method for solving the shortage of labour.
How is life in Finland like for foreign employees? Where will there be polarisation, and where is it possible to find good models for facing changes in working life? How can intergenerational cooperation improve the ability to cope at work and prevent shortage of labour? These questions are answered by the research project Building Finland’s Future (”Tulevaisuuden Suomen tekijät”). Its first results will be published before the 2023 parliamentary elections next spring.
Research helps combat shortage of employees
We are involved in financing the project. The work is carried out by a multidisciplinary and independent research institute, E2 Research.
Employees carrying out manual labour are the subjects of the research. Material is gathered with the help of interviews, questionnaires, workshops, and observation in workplaces.
In addition to JHL, the project is financed by Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions SAK, Service Union United PAM, Trade Union Pro, Finnish Association of Private Care Providers, Ministry of Justice, Confederation of Finnish Construction Industries RT, Industrial Employees TP, and Finnish Pension Alliance TELA.
– The research project raises practical working life problems but also good solutions that can be applied in various sectors.
Director of E2 Research, Karina Jutila, explains that research information helps in combating the shortage of employees and the societal problems it causes.
JHL’s report suggests increasing immigration to solve shortage of labour
The population will get older, and even fewer children will be born. Who will care for us, our parents and our grandmothers in the future? We are familiar with the theme of E2’s research project because we have published a report looking for solutions to the shortage of labour. We found three methods: Increasing the employment rate and prolonging careers, increasing the birth rate, and immigration.
– In our reports dealing with the need for workforce, we’ve noticed an extremely serious shortage of employees in occupations where manual labour is carried out. We need more labour immigration in order to safeguard public sector services, which is why it is important to conduct careful research on the topic. We must also make sure that everyone works under the same terms and conditions and complies with Finnish collective agreements, Trade Union JHL President Päivi Niemi-Laine points out.
In early 2022, we also conducted a comprehensive report on immigration and its impacts on the Finnish working life (summary in English). In addition to this, we asked what Finnish people think about labour immigration. The answer is obvious – Finnish people have an increasingly positive attitude towards labour immigration.
Learn more about the topic: JHL of the future – demographic change
E2’s recent research project is an excellent continuation to our own research.
– JHL is further developing its research activities and knowledge production. We aim to provide current solutions based on research information to challenges faced by society, the public sector and employees. This extensive research project provides qualitative information on changes in working life. It fits in well with our other reports on demographic structure and labour immigration, JHL’s Special Advisor Samuli Sinisalo states.